Sediments and aquatic mosses as pollution indicators for heavy metals in the Ave river basin (Portugal)

• Tipo: Artigo em Revista Científica Internacional
• Data: 1992

Autores

Gonçalves, EP (Autor) Outra; Rui Boaventura (Autor) FEUP; Mouvet, C (Autor) Outra

Revista

Título: Science of the Total Environment

Vol. 114

Páginas: 7-24

ISSN: 0048-9697

Editora: Elsevier

Indexação

ISI Web of Knowledge - 51 Citações

Scopus - 49 Citações

Outras Informações

ID Authenticus: P-00H-67M

DOI: 10.1016/0048-9697(92)90410-t

Abstract (EN): Analytical data are presented for concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn in sediments and aquatic bryophytes from the Ave river basin, Portugal. The relative abundance of aquatic bryophytes species was investigated. Fontinalis antipyretica was the most abundant. Natural background levels were determined for both plants and the fine fraction of sediments (< 63-mu-m) collected at uncontaminated sites. Contamination factors at each site were then calculated as the ratio between metal concentrations and background levels. The highest values were found in the Selho river for Cr and in the Este river for Cd, Cu and Zn. Leather tanning, metal plating and textile industries are the main sources of toxic metal contamination in these streams. Differences in contamination factors for plants and sediments are probably related to the hydraulic conditions in the streams. Rapidly flowing waters enhance the metal uptake by plants and the quiescent waters, upstream from weirs, allow the deposition of fine particles and promote metal accumulation in the sediments. Metal pollution indexes calculated as weighted averages of the individual metal contamination factors nevertheless showed a good correlation between mosses and sediments.

Idioma: Inglês

Tipo (Avaliação Docente): Científica

Nº de páginas: 18